Century 3040 not starting up

[Matt3385]

Hi, my dad can't seem to get his 3040 to start up. Here is what happened we got home and it was snowing so I wanted to drive the tractor about a bit to see how it handled in the snow. So I cleaned the tractor off. And started it up I tried to increase the rpms up to 1100. But the rpms kept on dropping to below 600 and going up to 900 rpms and it did a couple of little puffs of black smoke. So I shut the tractor down and went inside to get my dad. So about 5 minutes we went back out and he tried to start it up to see what was the problem. So he got on and started it up and it started to do the same thing but this time it did nothing but blow black smoke then about 1 minute of running it stalled out. So he turned off the tractor and tried to turn it back on but now it only cranks and doesn't fire and some times it blows a puff or two of black smoke. I told him I would go check tractorbynet to see if anybody else had the problems I found a post about cold weather starting and we tried all those solutions like letting the glow plugs heat up 3x before starting, we checked to see if the diesel gelled up. Since it has been cold for about a whole week highs of around 20 and lows of 0 to -8. The diesel was gelled up at all. We even put a heater next to the tractor to see if the it would start but it didn't. The odd thing is that the tractor was working perfectly 2 days ago in the same temperature. At last we ran out of ideas so I came here to see if anybody had any ideas before we call our dealer( his shop is 75 miles from here) Me and my dad would Appreciate it very much if somebody could help us with this problem. Thanks

 

[AndyClyde]

Slowly pour about 10 to 15 gallons of hot water over the engine and then try starting it. The hot water will warm the engine up...(been there done that)

 

[rameye]

From your post I cant tell if the diesel is gelled or not...

IMHO if the diesel is gelled there are products that you can add to the tank that will un-gell the diesel in the tank. You have to get the diesel in the filters, lines and the IP ungelled also. Only 1 way to do that and that is to warm these components up.
Try wrapping the entire tractor in a tarp (canvas if possible ) and add heat via a couple of 500 watt work lites. Caution keep a resonable distance away from combustibles. I've read that some have has success pointing a kerosene heater at their tractor. Use CAUTION, dont walk away, you must be there and baby sit.
Auto parts store also sell magnetic heaters that you stick to your oil pan and plug in.

When you warm it..it'll go, most likely...stay away from ether and starting fluids..you could blow the engine! If after heating and additives to the tank, and it's an emergency type of situation I've had success starting my truck with WD40 by spraying into the air inlet. (use Caution).

May I suggest either adding a anti-gel additive or simply using road formualted fuel (more $$).

Let the group know..good luck...warm is the key.

 

[Matt3385]

We solved the problem. Today my dad called the dealer and he told use what might be the problem. he said some water vapor might have gotten into the fuel filter and pump and froze. turns out he was right. To fix the problem First we added some diesel de-geller to the fuel tank. Then we heated up the engine by place a heater under the tractor and and put a heavy tarp over the tractor. Once we thought it was heated we took the side panel off and found the fuel filter didn't have any fuel into so we bled filter and then we bled the fuel pump. And the tractor started right up. We were lucky that we could fix it on our own. because they are calling for 6-12+ inches of snow and the tractor is the only way to remove the snow without shoveling. Thanks everybody for your help.

 

[Matt3385]

I guess its not our day today. after we got the tractor started we let it run for about 1 1/2 hours. then we shut down the tractor and went inside to watch some tv. Later we came out to put a trap over the tractor so snow wouldn't be all over the seat and floor of the tractor. So my dad wanted to move the tractor out a bit so it would be ready to move some snow and it wouldn't start. so we bled the filter and pump and it didn't start. My dad is guessing that filter has too much water in it. So we are hoping that we can get to the dealer before too much snow falls on the ground. and get a new filter for the tractor.

 

[rameye]

Are you getting fuel at the bleeders??

 

[LMTC]

I am NOT a century dealer but....I think if you take your old filter to any auto parts store you will find that a WIX 33263 fuel filter or equivalent is just fine. And yes, the filter can become saturated/coated, usually with a whitish gel that is created when water and diesel mix.

BTW--it's a good rule of thumb to keep a couple extra fuel filters around, as well as to change it ANY time you have any moisture in the fuel. usually a quick and easy fix.

 

[Matt3385]

We didn't get a chance to get the filter because the snow started falling 5 hours before it was suppose to. but we think we finally found out the problem. I looked under the tractor and found that one of the fuel lines froze and got crimped so no fuel was flowing to the engine so i got out my moms hairdryer and thawed the line and we got the fuel up the engine and it started up. but this time we cleaned out the garage and moved the tractor inside. hopefully we won't have anymore problems.

 

[GEB]

but this time we cleaned out the garage and moved the tractor inside

Good ideal /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
I keep mine in my shop @ 50 degrees, unless I'm out there
working.
Your tractor will be much better off with the fuel additive also.
I plan to use a centine boost all the time, for a better running engine.
Gene